The National tribune. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1877-1917, 1887-09-29
THE CURRENT BuGABoo.

banks TO move the wheat and hog products
which our industrious Western farmers will
persist in raising, and TO pay the equally
active cottOn-pickers in the Southwest. 1t
suits the purpose Of the stock gamblers in
Wall street TO raise clamor about the
"stringency" of the money market, and to
lay the blame at The doors of the Treasury.
These croakers always command a hearing
in the columns of the Metropolitan press,
and 10 the uninitiated it would appear that
the country was on the verge of financial
collapse. The readers of this class of news
papers have thus been subjected TO delib-
crate and protracted imposition.
The cry has been, "repeal war taxes"
stop the accumulation of a useless surplus"
until more or less alarm has been needlessly
created
The truth is this: First, there is no dan
gerous surplus in the Treasury; second, the
Treasury Department has, as usual, found a
way TO dispose of the current cash accumu-
lations according to the rules of business
common sense.
The further truth is that the motive which
actuates the howl is a desire on the part of
the importers of New York and Boston to
have the tariff removed, in order to open the
tloodgates for the inundation of pauper-
labor goods from Europe. They deal in inn
ported merchandise alone. If the protective
duty were removed, American artisans would
be out of work, and these gentry would sup
plant American cottons aud wooleDs with
their imported stufls. In short, they would
monopolize the wholesale business of the
country.
That is all they care about the surplus.
They are for free trade.
Another class were copperheads and con-
tractors during the war, and hate above all
things to see any recognition given TO the
men who went on the field of battle 10 save
the country. They regard pensions as Jobs, |"
and any one who advocates pension is a
"shark," and they cannot sleep for fear the
Tressuary viii be "plundered by this
INSCRIPTIONS horde" They want the
revenues of the Government depleted so
that there will be no funds to pay the just
demands of the disabled veterans. This
would crafty a gnawing spite that never
dies.
Recent circumstances conspired TO help
this aggregation of professional alarmists
and dishonest patriots, when the last of the
three per cent. bonds was paid Off They
thought their time had finally come. The
chorus was swelled TO volume that even
made the Government officials uneasy.
The surplus had been about a hundred
millions a year, which had been used in
paying off the debt, but now there was
nothing more due.
What was TO be done?
lilt VI llt1cut1 JUST
what any sensible business man would do.
lie made an arrangement with the holders
Of the Governments obligations TO compro-
mise by paying the AZ per cent bonds in
advance, and saving more than half the in
terest which would have been paid had
they run nearly four years more TO matu-
rity. He went a step farther, and during
the past week he offered 10 buy S14O0O00O
Of 4s and 4l per cents, at lbs aud 1881, re-
spectively.
With reference to the previous purchases
Of the latter bonds, we explained the effect
Of the transaction last week. Al to the
as the gain is much more noticeable
These bonds will not be due till 1907.
Within chat time they would earn so cents
interest on each dollar, or A cents each year
for 20 years which the Government must
finally pay. The saving, therefore, by buy
ing them in now with money for which the
Government has no immediate use, is the
difference between 50 cents and % cents, or
55 cents on every dollar Of the principal.
There is another view of the case.
Suppose the revenues should be reduced,
and for some reason the receipts should fall
OF, we might not have enough income TO
pay the ordinary expenses of the Govern
ment IL is only some 10 years since this
was actually the case, and we witnessed an
actual increase Of the public debt in time of
peace. This arose from the falling off of
imports.
In 1887 we had surplus" and law
was passed 10 dispose of it, 1t was TO be
loaned to the States. Under an act of Con-
gTess three distributions were made, amount
ing TO S2s,0O0.000, and before the time ar
rived for the fourth plum 10 be delivered,
the Government itself was in the market
negotiating loan at usurious rates
IL is dangerous business TO tamper with
the laws which affect the revenues.
Again, in a little less than four years from
now large amount Of bonds, those bearing
four-and-a-half per cent. interest, will become